This weekend I had the honor of flying around Walt Disney World with friend of the site bioreconstruct. Bioreconstruct is known for his aerial photography of the Central Florida theme parks, providing theme park fans with a peek into the construction of the latest attractions and a unique vantage point of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Our 45-minute flight took us over all four Walt Disney World theme parks and Universal Epic Universe. In this article, we’ll take a look at the ongoing Test Track 3.0 reimagining, and a look at construction for the outdoor high-speed loop.
Aerial Photos of Test Track Reimagining
We’ll start with a couple of wide photos of the front of EPCOT. We haven’t captured photos of the World Celebration Gardens from the air since the project was completed, and with the exception of Test Track, this view represents a completed EPCOT reimagining project.
If you’ve never been on Test Track, it is the circular building in the middle of the photo above. One of the fun elements from previous iterations of the ride has been the high-speed outdoor portion where the ride shoots out near the Cast Member parking lot area before looping back toward the building to end indoors. While on our recent helicopter tour over Walt Disney World, we noticed that there is a fair bit of work taking place on the outdoor portion of the ride, and we wanted to take a closer look from this unique vantage point of more than 3,000′ in the air.
In the middle of the outdoor loop, we can see the shipping crates that were staged before the ride closed down. We took a closer look at the staging from a ride on Test Track in the June 2024 article below. The thought then (and now) is that the shipping containers are where Disney is storing the ride vehicles during the work. The vehicles will reportedly be rebuilt, but Walt Disney World has not announced or confirmed that speculation.
As we can see, there is a fair amount of construction taking place at the high-speed outdoor loop. It looks like crews are working on the support columns as well as portions of the track. We’ve seen this type of work at other portions of the attraction, so it’s not necessarily breaking news. That said, this portion of the track likely experiences significant stress as the vehicles whip around the loop at some 40mph before accelerating to a top speed of more than 60mph along the straightaway toward the building. Crews are likely taking the downtime for the attraction to shore up the support columns, even if the track itself isn’t expected to change at all.
Perhaps what is most notable is what you don’t see. There is no evidence that Walt Disney World plans on enclosing the outdoor loop or any portion of the outdoor track. There was some speculation, or at least some hope, among fans that Walt Disney World would at least add some cover to the outdoor portion of the ride given the regular afternoon downtime in the summers thanks to inclement weather, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Taking an even closer look at some notable work, we can see some scaffolding near where the vehicles exit the building. It is believed that this is an access area for props to either be removed from the building or to be delivered into the building. The scaffolding appears to be missing plywood, but perhaps it was taken down as part of preparations for the recent Hurricane Milton.
Shooting into the shadows is tough any time of the day, but particularly difficult from more than 3,000′ in the air through helicopter windows. At any rate, here’s a look at the front of the attraction, with the former canopy now demolished, and work underway on creating a sleek new overhang at the entrance.
Test Track 3.0 Description
Walt Disney Imagineering is collaborating with Chevrolet to push innovation forward and celebrate humanity’s enduring drive (pun intended) on the thrilling road to a brighter tomorrow. Imagineers are reaching back into history for inspiration – from the original World of Motion – and bringing that spirit of optimism to the next iteration of the Test Track attraction. But, before we get too far down this winding road, Test Track will celebrate today’s innovation while highlighting the past, present, and future. The queue will feature six distinct exhibits, and within each room celebrate the vehicles – and people behind the vehicles – that push the envelope and help get people to our next chapter in our motion journey.
New show scenes will be added showcasing technological advances and how our lifestyles and relationships to mobility connect everyone. Enjoy a joy ride through scenes focusing on onboard technology, customization and personalization. Followed by a trip through a scenic outdoor route reminding us all of the joys of driving, taking in the world around us and spending quality time with friends and family.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!
